The present invention relates to a portable electronic device such as a composite IC card having contacting and noncontacting interfaces and, more particularly, to a portable electronic device including a composite IC card having contacting and noncontacting interfaces and capable of well maintaining the reliability as a composite IC card by preventing operation errors when driven from either interface, and an IC module for the composite IC card.
One conventional composite IC card having contacting and noncontacting interfaces as a kind of portable electronic device is disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKOKU Publication No. 4-16831.
This composite IC card disclosed in Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKOKU Publication No. 4-16831 includes a memory, a CPU, and an IC for generating a signal in response to an external input. The card also includes an electrical contact mechanism for responding to an external apparat us by contacting the apparatus and an antenna mechanism for responding to an external apparatus by noncontacting communication.
Data can be written in the memory of this composite IC card and the contents of the memory can be changed from an external apparatus connected to the electrical contact mechanism. To respond to an external apparatus by noncontacting communication, specific information in the memory is modulated and output from the antenna mechanism.
Jpn. Pat. Appln. KOKAI Publication No. 9-326021 has disclosed a composite IC card incorporating a battery which is charged by a voltage supplied from a terminal apparatus.
Unfortunately, the composite IC cards as described above have the following problems.
That is, either of the above composite IC cards has no countermeasure against operation errors occurring when the card is driven via the noncontacting antenna while the card is connected to and driven by an external apparatus via the electrical contact mechanism, or when the card is driven by an external apparatus via the electrical contact mechanism while the card is driven by an external apparatus via the noncontacting antenna. Consequently, the reliability as a composite IC card is unsatisfactory.
Additionally, either composite IC card uses a common IC such as a memory to respond to an external apparatus by contacting the apparatus and respond to an external apparatus by noncontacting communication. However, when the card responds to an external apparatus by noncontacting communication, only data is simply output to the apparatus, so the card is used only as a collating medium in this case. This limits the applications of the card.
Furthermore, when this composite IC card responds to an external apparatus by noncontacting communication, the internal CPU does not operate. Accordingly, no satisfactory security function can be achieved in this noncontacting response.
The present invention has been made in consideration of the above situation, and has as its object to provide a portable electronic device including a composite IC card having contacting and noncontacting interfaces and capable of well maintaining the reliability as a composite IC card by preventing operation errors when drive n from either interface, and an IC module for the composite IC card.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a portable electronic device including a composite IC card having contacting and noncontacting interfaces, capable of being used for various purposes by executing equivalent functions when driven in both contacting and noncontacting manners and achieving a satisfactory security function, and also capable of well maintaining the reliability as a composite IC card by preventing operation errors when driven from either interface.
To achieve the above objects, according to an aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable electronic device comprising:
a contacting interface including a plurality of contact terminals for exchanging driving power and data;
a noncontacting interface for generating driving power and demodulating received data from a signal received via an antenna; and
inhibiting means for inhibiting an operation of the other one of the contacting and noncontacting interfaces while the portable electronic device is driven via one of the contacting and noncontacting interfaces.
To achieve the above objects, according to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable electronic device which has contacting and noncontacting interfaces and a control circuit connected to the contacting and noncontacting interfaces, and is driven by the contacting or noncontacting interface, comprising:
detecting means for detecting whether the portable electronic device is driven via the contacting or noncontacting interface; and
connecting means for selectively connecting one of the contacting and noncontacting interfaces to the control circuit and inhibiting a signal input and output via the other one of the contacting or noncontacting interface on the basis of the detection result from the detecting means.
To achieve the above objects, according to still another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a portable electronic device which has contacting and noncontacting interfaces and a control circuit connected to the contacting and noncontacting interfaces, and is driven by the contacting or noncontacting interface, comprising:
detecting means for detecting whether the portable electronic device is driven via the contacting or noncontacting interface; and
switching means for switching commands executable by the portable electronic device on the basis of the detection result from the detecting means.
Additional objects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. The objects and advantages of the invention may be realized and obtained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations particularly pointed out hereinafter.